Dreams
by eeveefairysparkle
Summary: Set a year after Tales of Symphonia 2. Raine and Genus meet a young boy in the woods and befriend him. The boy, Cast, contains secrets that he himself doesn't remember. Explores what happened to the real Emil and eventually Aster. AN stops after chap. 1
1. Chapter 1

Hi everybody. This eeveefairysparkle speaking to you live, (kind of) and here I bring you my first ever fanfiction on this site… Dreams. Takes place after the good ending of Tales of Symphonia II: Dawn of the New World. Shows my views of what really happened to both the real Emil Castagnier and Aster.

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia, Tales of Symphonia II, or any of the other Tales games. This is purely a work of fanfiction and all I could possibly own is the plot of this fanfiction.

* * *

"Raine, why are we here?" asked Genis, for the thousandth time.

"Because, Genis, I heard rumors of some newly discovered ruins somewhere nearby. I just have to check them out!"

The Sage siblings were sitting around a campfire with Genis (thankfully) cooking the meal. Around them were the mysterious sounds of the forest and the wind wailing through the trees. Genis wondered yet again if anything could actually be out here, but decided not to argue. He'd lost track of where they were a long time ago. (AN: Yeah, I'm kinda lost too. Where are we?) As the two sat in silence they pondered the many things they had gone through with their friends. It had been an entire year since they had met Emil and Marta. Over that year Raine had begun teaching young Emil all that he had missed by not going to school. Unlike the other students, like Lloyd, Emil didn't mind, and even enjoyed learning. (AN: Hey, Raine? Genis? Can you guys hear me?)

"Hey, did you hear something, Raine?" asked Genis, suddenly. (AN: Yay!) As he spoke, a rustling sound came from behind them. Out stumbled a boy of about 17 years old. (AN: Oh…)

"Oh dear" gasped Raine. The boy was very badly hurt and seemed barely able to stand. He looked up for a moment before passing out on the ground. Raine wasted no time in cleaning and bandaging his wounds, using her healing spells, and making him as comfortable as possible. He had short, spiky, light brown hair and his eyes were a deep green. He carried a simple, small, and worn out pack and his clothes were dark green and brown. He had with him a sword that rather resembled Emil's and had a dagger strapped to his waist.

As Raine and Genis waited for the boy to wake up they couldn't help but wonder what he was doing here. There was nothing out here besides the possible ruins. The boy woke with a gasp. (AN: He is soooo cute.) He looked around, a bit afraid but mostly confused. "Who are you?" he asked.

"My name is Raine Sage, and this is my brother Genis," answered Raine "and who are you?"

The boy seemed uncertain for a moment before he answered "Cast."

"Well, Cast, would you like something to eat?" asked Genis with a smile.

"Yes please, thank you."

"So, Cast, what brings you here? Not many people venture out this far. It can be dangerous for those unprepared," said Raine after a few moments of silence.

"Well, I don't really have a home or friends, so I wander around a lot. I camp most of the time and I know how to fight so when someone warned me that this place was dangerous I took it as a challenge and came here anyway. I ended up getting lost and I ran into one too many monsters. Thanks for saving me, by the way."

"Don't mention it. If you'd like, you can travel with us. It must get lonely if don't have friends," said Genis.

"Thanks, I'd like that."

* * *

So it's a bit shorter than I had planned, but this should do it for now.

(AN: Why can't anyone see me!)

Also, who are you?

(AN: You might find out… eventually. Muahahahaha.)

Ok then. Bye everyone! Please tell me what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

First off, AN! Get out here! I need to talk to you.

(AN: Yes?)

I need you to stop talking during the story. I have no idea who you are and its distracting people from the story. You are free to stay, but only interrupt if you have something relevant to say. I'll talk to before and after chapters, like this. Ok?

(AN: yes)

You ok?

(AN: yep)

* * *

Cast proved to be a good traveling partner. He could fight surprisingly well and could cook a good meal nine times out of ten. He was sympathetic and showed none of the usual prejudice when he learned that Raine and Genis were half-elves. After traviling together for two weeks, looking for the ruins that weren't necisarly there, Genis and Cast had become great friends. Genis loved telling Cast about his adventures; everything from the world regeneration, to how he met Emil and Marta, to how Lloyd was accused of the blood purge in Palmacosta and how he was innocent, and even how Emil was allowed to return from the Ginnungagap to live a human life. Cast listened with complete fascination.

Despite this, he reveled almost nothing about himself. The only hint that Genis got was an offhanded remark that the name Emil Castagnier sounded almost familiar and he had probably met him somewhere before.

"Come on, I've told all about us. Can't you tell us a little bit about yourself?" asked Genis, once again.

"Alright, but there's not much to tell," sighed Cast. "I only have two years worth of memories. Two years ago I found myself on a beach somewhere near Palmacosta. It was just after the blood purge, so I guess I got caught in it and somehow escaped. I can't be sure because even though I've been back to Palmacosta several times I still don't remember anything. After I recovered I set out to search for a way to regain my memories, but so far I haven't had any luck. I don't remember my real name; I call myself Cast because at first I felt like I was only an outcast. I'm over that now, but the name Cast stuck. See? Not nearly as interesting as your story."

"I wouldn't say that," replied Raine, who had been listening the whole time. "Anyway, we are going to go meet our friends latter this week. Would you like to come with us?"

"Sure, but what about the ruins?"

"I'm starting to doubt there are any. Besides, we really should be going soon," said Raine. "The meeting is back at home, in Iselia. Have you ever been there before?"

"No, but I've heard about it before. I can't wait; I actually would like to see the whole world. It's kind of a dream of mine."

"Then it's settled. Let's go!" said Genis, very eager to see his friends.

* * *

(AN: There. I behaved myself.)

Thank you. Well I suppose that's it…

(AN: WAIT!)

What?

(AN: You forgot to tell them about the poll. Again.)

Right. There is a poll on my page pertaining to this story. It has to do with what will happen later on in the story and I have several ways that I could take it at this point. I would love some input so if you like this story then please go over there and vote.

(AN: Now you're done)

Bye (AN: Bye)


	3. Chapter 3

(AN: eeveefairysparkle messed up last chapter)

Yes I did, I originally put that this story took place a year after the game and three years after the blood purge. I was under the impression that the game was two years after the blood purge. It was brought to my attention that this was not the case. I have fixed the chapter and it is now one year after the game and two years after the blood purge. That is six months between the blood purge and the start of the game, a few months for the actual game, and about a year after that until the start of the story.

(AN: Thanks to AntiSora for pointing that out.)

* * *

When the group arrived in Iselia Genis noticed that Cast seemed nervous.

"What's wrong?" asked Genis. He had become more protective of his new friend after he learned of his amnesia.

Slightly annoyed, because Cast didn't see himself any differently because of his amnesia and didn't like people treating him differently, replied "nothing, I'm fine. I'm just nervous about meeting so many new people."

"Don't worry too much," said Raine, "I already let most of our friends know that we were bringing a guest. They all can't wait to meet you."

"Thanks," said Cast, with a smile.

After the failed attempt to find the ruins Raine had decided to return later to search again. Genis wasn't too thrilled and asked if he could stay in Iselia instead. Raine agreed that he could and asked if Cast would like to stay in Iselia, continue the search with Raine, or if he was going to continue on his own. Cast decided that it would be more fun to travel with Raine on an adventure than to wait in Iselia and he certainly didn't want to start traveling by himself again.

"Finally, going on adventures is fun and all, but it's nice to be home," said Genis as the group walked into Iselia. "We're meeting in the school house; follow us, Cast."

As Cast walked into the unfamiliar school house he looked around. The rest of the group had already arrived and turned to see the newcomers. Right away a boy in red with brown hair and twin swords jumped up and said, "Hey guys, glad you finally made it." To Cast, who was staying back to avoid attention, he said, "Are you Cast? Raine wrote to me saying you were coming. My name is Lloyd," and stuck out his hand in a friendly way.

Cast, not used to such large groups, hesitated for a moment, but quickly smiled and shook Lloyd's hand. "Yes, my name is Cast. It's a pleasure to meet you, Lloyd."

"Name's Zelos Wilder," said another boy with bright red hair. Zelos smiled and patted Cast on the back.

"I'm Presea," said a small girl with pink hair. Cast noted that while she spoke softly she had a surprisingly strong handshake. He also noticed that Genis seemed to be blushing while she was there.

"Regal Bryant, at your service," said a tall man with blue hair. He seemed like the kind of man that Cast naturally looked up to.

"I'm Colette. It's nice to meet you," said a smiling blond girl. There seemed to be something almost angelic about her Cast thought. He then realized that Colette must be the chosen of Sylvarant that he had heard about and that she would actually have angel powers.

"Sheena Fujibayashi, pleased to meet you," said another girl, this one with black hair and wearing light purple.

Finally, a girl with long, light brown hair with flowers in it walked over with another boy, this one with blond hair and green eyes. Cast realized that by process of elimination this boy must be Emil, but what was strange was that he could have sworn he recognized the name but this boy was in no way familiar to him.

"Hi, my name is Marta," said the smiling girl, "and this is Emil." Sure enough, this boy was Emil Castagnier. Emil didn't say anything but was blankly staring at Cast, making the already uncomfortable Cast even more nervous. After a few moments Marta elbowed Emil in the side to get his attention.

"Oh! Sorry, hi," said Emil with a start. He held out his hand and smiled, but he still seemed distracted. Cast decided to let it go and went to talk with Raine and Regal who were discussing the recent trip looking for ruins.

Meanwhile, Lloyd and Genis, who had noticed Emil acting strangely walked over to him.

"Hey, you okay? You seem kinda out of it," said Lloyd. Emil, still watching Cast, only nodded.

"Do you know him? Cast said something earlier about your name sounding familiar," said Genis.

Emil winced and asked, "What can you tell me about him?" in a strained voice.

"Not much, he has amnesia so he doesn't remember anything about his past. He said he probably lost it two years ago, in the blood purge of Palmacosta," said Genis. This time it was Lloyd who winced, for more explainable reasons. Even though he did not cause the blood purge he was blamed for it. Most people knew now that he was innocent, but old memories die hard.

After a long pause Emil finally said, "I know who he is. I've never met him but I am completely sure of it. He is Emil Castagnier."

* * *

Le Gasp! Anyway, tell me what you think! Hey, where are you AN… AN?

(AN: Huh? Are we finally done? You took your sweet time about it. It's been what, a week?)

Yes I know. I could make a whole bunch of excuses about how busy I've been, but really, I was just intimidated by this chapter. I don't do well with large numbers of people in one scene; it's hard to write them in character. So, I've been putting it off. Sorry.

(AN: Bye bye)


	4. Chapter 4

Let's get this party started!

(AN: I thought it started last chapter.)

I mean… oh never mind. By the way, spoilers for anyone who has not completed the whole game, if it's not too late.

(AN: It is)

* * *

"What? ... Wait… Emil… WHAT?" stuttered Lloyd after a while, completely lost.

"But how can he be Emil Castagnier? You're Emil Castagnier," said Genis.

"No, I'm not. You both know that. I'm a part of the summon spirit Ratatosk. However, someone named Emil Castagnier has to have existed at some point. He has family in Luin, people who remember him, and parents. Even though I am not Emil, Ratatosk could not have set all that up for what he thought of as a fake personality. I always thought he had died, I wanted to search for him but I had no idea how to start."

"But how do you know that he is the real Emil?" asked Lloyd.

"And how could you have no idea where to start? You should have known everything about him. You have all his memories after all," added Genis.

"Well, not quite. The memories I have are damaged. Whatever happened during the blood purge, Cast must have hit his head or something like that. He has no memories of who he is and my memories only come with prompting from someone else. Someone would mention something about my past and only then would I remember it. That is also how I know who he is, I saw his face and 'remembered' it was mine."

(AN: Hi. To clear something up. From now on the Emil you play as in the game will still be known as Emil and Cast will be known as Cast unless otherwise indicated. Eevee is doing this not only because she thinks it will make it easier for you to understand but also because the whole thing confuses her too.)

"Could it be that his memories are completely lost, and not hidden? I mean you have remembered some things about your, or his, past; but he has no memories at all," asked Genis.

It took Emil a minute to understand what Genis was asking and Lloyd looked completely lost. "I don't think so. You mean could Ratatosk have taken his memories and made it so he couldn't get them back, right? I don't even think it would be possible for him to do that. You said he recognized my name. I think that means that while I was living in Luin and traveling with you I had plenty of opportunities for my memories to return, while Cast did not have those opportunities. His recognition of my name proves that he still can get his memories back, I hope," he said after a moment.

It was then that Raine came up to the group and said "Well Genis, I'm off to take a look at those ruins now. I'll see you when I get back then."

"Okay, see you later then," said Genis, distractedly.

"So, do tell Cast about all of this?" asked Lloyd.

"Of course, he has the right to know who he is," said Emil, instantaneously. "We might as well get it over with now."

"Alright, but don't worry too much about it. Cast is a kind person and he won't get too mad," said Genis, trying to reassure Emil.

"Okay," said Emil, smiling, "let's just… hey, where did he go?"

"Who? Cast? Don't worry about him, he left while you guys were over here talking all by yourselves," said Zelos, who had chosen that moment to walk into the conversation. "I mean what gives? We've been here over an hour you guys have barely said hello to everyone. Is something up?" he asked in a slightly concerned, slightly annoyed voice.

The three boys looked at each other as if deciding how much to tell Zelos. After a moment they decided they might as well tell him everything, after all, he was a trustworthy friend and there was no point in hiding something they had just decided to tell everyone anyway.

"Aw, man, no wonder you looked kinda out of it. You ok?" Zelos asked Emil after they had gotten done explaining everything to him.

"Yeah, don't worry about me. I'm fine," he said with a smile. It wasn't one of those fake smiles and his friends could tell that he meant it.

"So where did Cast go anyway?" asked Lloyd.

"Oh! Now I remember," said Genis suddenly, "He went with Raine to look for those ruins again. I almost forgot about that, sorry."

"Don't worry about it; we'll just have to tell him when he gets back. By the way, should we tell everyone else in the meantime?" said Zelos.

"Yeah," said Emil, slightly reluctant but knowing it had to be done sooner or later. "Everyone, can I have your attention?" he called, raising his voice.

With the help of Lloyd, Genis, and Zelos; Emil explained the situation to everyone else. After the initial shock everyone started asking questions, most of which they really didn't know how to answer.

"Everyone, please be quiet. I think that's enough, right now we need to figure out what to tell Cast when he gets back. It might not be the best idea to just say 'hey, it turns out that Emil isn't the only Emil around. It turns out you're actually Emil Castagnier and this Emil is using your memories, sorry about that,' it's not exactly subtle," said Marta after everyone had been asking questions for a few minutes.

"Marta's right," said Regal, "I also think that we need to figure out exactly what happened ourselves. A lot of your story seems like guess work, there must be a way to figure everything out for certain. Emil, do know of any way to get into contact with your other personality?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. I was going to tell you all before all of this confusion got started. I actually figured out how to do it about a month ago," said Emil.

"Good, hopefully he will be able to shed some light onto this mater," said Regal.

"It does take quite a bit of time to do though, at least an hour usually," said Marta.

"Well then let's wait for now," said Sheena, "We have plenty of time. Let's finish the party and deal with this later."

Everyone agreed and soon everyone was back to talking about what they had done since they had last seen each other and in some cases (Zelos) flirting with the girls any chance he… I mean they… got, much to everyone's considerable irritation.

* * *

Sigh

(AN: How many times did you have to re-write this chapter anyway?)

I lost count a long time ago. This chapter was a total pain to write. Each time I went to write part of it nothing ever made sense. This is the best effort you see now.

(AN: And it still makes no sense. Don't worry; someone is sure to understand what you meant.)

I suppose, statistically, someone has to. Anyway, I am DONE with this chapter.

(AN: Preview for next chapter; Eevee, and by extension all of you will get to finally get a hint to who I am)

Really? Thank you, I still have no idea who you are.


	5. Chapter 5

Sorry for the wait everyone. Anyway, AN?

(AN: Yes?)

Who are you?

(AN: I'll give you a hint. I need children to believe in me to survive.)

… Tinkerbell?

(AN: Not quite, I'll tell you later)

* * *

"So how are you going to talk to old Ratatosk anyway, Emil?" said Zelos when they were ready to start.

"Well, even though Emil and Ratatosk are separated, they are still two parts of the same person. They can still talk to each other, it just takes more time and concentration," said Marta.

"Marta's right, I've done it before and it gets faster and easier each time but it still takes about an hour to get into contact with him. When I do, I'll repeat the conversation out loud for you all so you can know everything that's going on. I'll use my voice for things I'm saying and I'll imitate his voice for things he's saying. Sound good?" said Emil.

"Sure, tell us when you're ready," said Lloyd.

Emil sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes and sat like that for about 45 minutes. He then opened his eyes and said, "Done." He had a far-away look in his eyes, like he was focusing on something else.

In his mind, Emil was in a seamless void. He appeared to be floating in a world of mist, but he was also standing on something, something that he couldn't see. Swirls of different colors would go past, reds and greens mostly. This was the place that he had once fought Ratatosk. There was Ratatosk standing in front of him now. Emil could vaguely sense his real body back in Iselia, and prepared to have himself repeat out-loud what was said here.

"I see, so that's the problem," said Ratatosk, after Emil had explained the situation with Cast once again. "Well, I can shed some light on that. You see, when Marta woke me up I had already chosen the form of Aster; don't ask me why, because I'm not sure myself. I wasn't sure of anything right then. I wandered around and found a young boy who I now know to be Cast. I had certain… means at my disposal and used them to copy this boy's memory and create a personality around them. Had I been more clear headed at the time I would have realized I could have used to those means to heal and recover instantly. I would also have realized that if you thought you were Cast you would be sure to realize you didn't look like him. I had no idea Cast had amnesia at the time, however it makes sense now."

"I see," said Emil, "what do you mean by means?"

Ratatosk gave Emil a look that seemed to say 'I'll tell you about it later' and continued without answering the question. "After I was done copying Cast's memories I looked around and realized he had gone. I was weak and unable look for him, and at the time I was rather incapable of caring, so I let you take over. That is where you're memories start."

"Alright," said Emil, "thank you." He then switched his focus more to the real world without completely losing contact with Ratatosk and said, "Would you guys mind if I spoke with Ratatosk alone? I have some things I need to talk to him about."

The others back in Iselia responded saying sure and Emil was aware of them leaving to give him privacy.

When they were gone Emil turned to Ratatosk in his mind and said, "Ok, what's this all about?"

"Remember what we were talking about last week?" Emil nodded. "Well then, you remember how I told about the summon spirit that existed in this world long before the worlds were split. Her name was Deseray and she had the power to grant wishes to those she saw fit. The only wishes she could not grant would be to bring someone back to life, make someone fall in love, and to kill someone. At one point some people; humans, elves, and half-elves alike; saw fit to trap her in a bottle and made it so he would have to grant 3 wishes to anyone who released her. I used my powers to break her seal and release her for good. She was grateful and decided to give me three wishes to use at my discretion despite the fact that she did not have to. Years and years passed and I used the first wish to set the trap in the ginnungigop that turned the owners of the Deris-emblem to stone. The second I used to copy Cast's memories. Not the smartest use. As you know, the third remains."

"Speaking of the third wish, when will it be ready?" asked Emil.

"I need about a month more. I can only work on it when Richter is not paying attention. I have a feeling that he would not let us do it if he knew."

"Yes, you're probably right. I will use that month to help Cast get his memories back, it isn't fair that I have them and he doesn't."

With that, Emil left the place inside his mind and returned his attention to Iselia.

* * *

**Extra**

Cast and Raine arrived back in the forest to resume the search for the mysterious ruins. The others, Genis especially, had seemed reluctant to accompany Raine on her journey. After having traveled with her for a short while he believed he understood why. She got overexcited when talking about finding and studying these and other ruins. Cast saw how this would eventually deter people from trips like these. They had not even found these ruins and he had already begun to witness what one of her friends in Iselia had warned him about before he left, "Ruin Mode" is what they had called it.

He didn't mind, however. Raine was nice and a good traveling companion. He was also rather excited himself. He loved to travel and see new places, to discover fantastic things, and to create new memories to make up for the ones he lost.

Shortly after starting the trip the two of them stumbled upon the rumored ruins. Raine was reacting as was typical of her, overly excited and completely fascinated, but Cast did not notice. He simply stood in amazement. It was like nothing he had ever seen, and despite his short memory he had still seen quite a bit. It was a village, no bigger than Iselia had been, but it was made entirely of stone carvings. Each carving was hollow, unique, and large enough to house a family. He stepped in one of these houses shaped like a pine tree and saw that all the furniture was made of stone as well. He marveled at the expert craftsmanship and relatively good quality it was still in. He couldn't wait to tell all his new friends about it.

* * *

(A.N.: So…)

I know, I've been busy and all the usual, but that's not the biggest reason this chapter is late. I've been re-working most of the story and ironing out most of the kinks. It should make more sense now and flow better. And now… A.N., who are you?

(A.N.: What, no guesses? Alright, here's how it works. You are Eevee, the one who writes the stories and all that jazz. I am the fairy, your ideas and weird thought that give you inspiration to write. The stories that result are the sparkle, the final outcome that hopefully entertains the people reading.)

I see, so that's where the name Eeveefairysparkle comes from then.

(A.N.: Sure, let's go with that.)


End file.
